Select the figure from amongst the Answer Figures which will continue the same…

Concept

In a positional rotation series, the same set of symbols stays fixed in number but each symbol shifts one place along a fixed cyclic path of positions at every step. Identify the single repeating cycle of positions, and the next figure is obtained by advancing every symbol exactly one place along that cycle.

Application

Each figure here uses the five symbols square, triangle, question-mark, cross and equals, placed in five positions: top-left, top-right, centre, bottom-left and bottom-right. Tracking any one symbol across the five problem figures shows every symbol travels along the same closed loop of positions, one step per figure:

1. The path of positions is: centre then top-left then top-right then bottom-left then bottom-right, and back to centre.

2. From the fifth problem figure (triangle top-left, cross top-right, square centre, equals bottom-left, question-mark bottom-right), advance every symbol one step along that loop.

3. Square moves centre to top-left; triangle moves top-left to top-right; question-mark moves bottom-right to centre; cross moves top-right to bottom-left; equals moves bottom-left to bottom-right.

4. Resulting figure: square top-left, triangle top-right, question-mark centre, cross bottom-left, equals bottom-right.

Cross-check

The loop has five positions, so after five steps every symbol returns to where it began. The required sixth figure must therefore repeat the very first problem figure: square top-left, triangle top-right, question-mark centre, cross bottom-left, equals bottom-right. The answer figure showing exactly this arrangement continues the series.